Clamping hub



' Feb. 19, 1946. I

L 1 ,f I

E. v, CRANE ET Al. CLMPING HUB Filed March 1 8, '1944 INVEN'TOR 50W/9,90 LA CHW/V5 Patented Feb. 19, 1946 CLAMPING HUB.

Edward V. Crane, Brooklyn, and Herbert F. Johnson, Baldwin, N. Y., assignors to Bliss Company, Brooklyn, N. Y., a corporation of Delaware Application March 18, 1944, Serial No. 527,382

Claims.

The present invention relates to improvements in hubs upon whichmay be mounted circular mechanical elements or tools such as wheels, circular cutters, and the like. It relates, more particularly, to hubs adapted to be clamped firmly against angular or axial displacement on a smooth-surfaced spindle or shaft.

It is often desirable, in various types of machines, to mount one or more wheels or other circular rotatin-g elements, such as circular cutters, upon a shaft which may have a relatively smooth surface and in which, for reasons of stiffness, strength, straightness or safety, no keyways, splines or other irregularities are present to aid in fixing such a circular element or elevments on the shaft. Under such conditions it is important that'substantially the entire inner surface of the hub of such element grip the shaft firmly to avoid displacement of the hub either axially or circumferentially with respect to the shaft.

In order to obtain this complete gripping effect, at least two conditions should be fulfilled; (l)v the contraction of the hub should be effective substantially evenly about the entire circumference of the hub, as otherwise the firm engagement of the hub with the shaft may be localized at two or a few spots about the hub; and (2) all parts of the hub should be maintained in substantially perfect circumferential alignment in which the central circumferential line of f the hub extends therearound in a` single plane. Circumferential Inalalignment, a condition wherein the said line extends somewhat spirally around a shaft in contrast to the mentioned single plane extension, may result in imperfect gripping at various axial points along the inner surface of the hub and may cause imperfect functioning of the rotating element, individually, and of the functioning of the rotating element in relation to other rotating elements mounted upon the same shaft. Y

One example of the importance of maintaining such circumferential alignment is evident in socalled gang slitters, comprising several circular cutters, al1 mounted on a common shaft, in canmaking machinery, for cutting sheet metal into strips for use in making can bodies. Obviously,

in such structures, it is important to effect a straight cut in the sheet metal and the several circular cutters would not function together properly to yield that result unless substantially perfect circumferential and axial alignment is `flflantained in each cutter.

An important object of the invention is the provision of a clamping hub in which the contraction thereof is effective substantially evenly overits entire circumference causing the hub, when contracted, to grip the shaft firmly at all points therearound and thus to aid materially in yielding a rigidmounting of the hub upon the shaft.

Another important object is the provision of a clamping hub in which the contraction and expansion thereof may be effected while assuring that circumferential alignment is maintained at all times.

Still another important object of the invention is the provision of a clamping hub having means for positively expanding and contracting it to cause it to grip or be freed readily with respect to a smooth shaft upon which it may be mounted.

The foregoing and other objects are accomplished according to the present invention .by

. said portion, which, at both sides thereof, is integral with the body of the hub to maintain circumferential alignment, includes adjacent opposed slots, one extending outwardly fro-m the y inner circumference of the hub and the other extending inwardly from the outer circumference thereof. A screw is arranged so that it extends tangentially of-the hub, through the said collapsible portion, with its head and its threaded portionA coacting with the hub body at opposite sides of the collapsible portion, to collapse the latter and thus contract the hub body into firm and complete engagement with the shaft. A stop,

Vin the form of a plug or stud, is Yarranged to it from the shaft.

The invention may be understood from the accompanying drawing, in which: Y

Figure lis a side elevational view of a preferred embodiment of a clamping hub according tothe present invention, including also a portion of a circular element which may be considered as a circular knife or cutter, the latter being partly broken away to show a detail ofthe hub;

Fig..2 is a view, partly in elevation and partly in section, taken on the irregularN line 2 2 .of

Fig. 1; y

Fig. 3 is a detail, in section, taken on the line 3`3ofFig.2; Y-

Fig. 4 is an elevational view of the hub as seen from the left of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary view, similar to a portion of Fig. 1, illustrating another of various possible other embodiments of the present invention.

The illustrated preferred embodiment, shown as mounted upon a` shaft II,y comprises an annular hub body I2, liaying therein. a pluralityA of relatively shallow tapped h'oles I3, preferably symmetrically arranged about the said body, and adapted to receive plural machine bolts Illa, b, c,

d, e, f for securing a cutter I5 or other circular element thereto, in a well understood manner. The hub body I2 may be formed' with an annular flange I6 which may extend' axially of. the inner circumferential portion of the hub body to the extent of the thickness of the cutter I5, thus enlarging, somewhat, the inner hub surfacel which grips the shaft.

The structure of the hub body I2 which renders i-t'- expansiloleA and contractile. comprises. a portion I"'Ii of the hub body which isA rendered collapsible, substantial-ly throughout. its` entire radial section, circumferentially of thev hubr body I2, by the formationof slots I8`a and I'Bb each extending throughout the entire axial length of the hub body lf2, including theziiange- I6; the slot I8a. extending from the outer circumference of thebody |22 to a point near the inner circumference thereof and adjacent the slot I-Bb, and the latter slot extending from the inner circumference. or the bodyV I2 toa= point near theA outer circumference thereof and adjacent the slot I8a. In the preferred embodiment, as illustrated, theI slots I 8a and Ib arecurved and partially encircle one of the tapped holes I3.

It will be perceived that the described. slot ar:- rangement leaves a connecting portion I9, which connects thef outer circumferential portion of lth'e hub bodyv lf2, at one.A side of the collapsible. por;- tion l'If, withv the inner circumferential' portion of the hub body, at the Vother* side of the. collapsible portion I'l.. Anouter web Il9a. andf inner `Web I=9b= of the connecting portion t9 are both sufficiently narrow and the-huby body |12 is' of' such material that when force is,I applied', as hereinafter explained, the webs t9`a and! Iilbmay bend or become somewhatdistorted about-linesparallel,

tothe axis of' the shaft ITI-f, to permit the body t2, as a-whole, to` expand and! contract;

The webs` Ial and@ I-Slr, however, are"- of such substantialdimensions along: lines. parallel. to. the axis ofthe shaft It (zbeing as: long, in thatJ dimension, as. the entire axial thickness of the hub body L21) that while the. hub: bodyY I2. may con.- tract and. expand, the connecting` portion, I9 af:- fords.A a. positive, restriction against any .resulting circumferential. disalignment of the portions of the hub body I2.. at opposite: sides of the co1- lapsible portion Il. Y l

The means for forcibly contracting the hub body I2, preferably comprise a. headed locking screw which is adapted to be inserted from the exterior of the hub into a. tangential bore 2I extending through the collapsible portion I1. 'Ihe bore 2|, as best seen in Fig. 3,l is enlarged at one end to. accommodate the head 20a of the locking screw, and is internally threaded at its opposite end to receive the threaded end 2b of said. screw. The diameter ofthe intermediate portion of the bore'2I is sufficiently greater than the diameter of the threaded portion 2Gb of the screw that when the latter is inserted into said bore, the said threaded portion may slide freely through said intermediate portion of the bore intoposition to coact With the internally threaded end of the bore. The head 20a may be provided with a socket or recess 28e, preferably of polygonal design, to receive a complementally shaped socket wrench to tighten and loosen the screw 20.

The inside of the hub body I2, made for any given shaft size, is of such a normal. size, slightly greaterl than the shafty that it may slide freely along the latter to its desired position thereon after which the locking screw may be screwed tightly into the bore 2|, causing the portion I'I of the hub to collapse somewhat to effect contraction of the hub as a whole thus deriving a firm grip of the hubupon the shaft.

The extent of the collapse of the portion II and th'e consequent contraction of the hub, is limited according to the width of the cuts forming the slotsr Illa. and |1816. It may be seen from Fig. 3 that the mentioned collapse of the portion I'I is enhanced' and made to occur, in effect, throughout. its. entire radiali section because of. the. arrangement by which the closed inner endaof slot Ia is separtedfrom. an adjacent portion. of the slot Ib` by the relatively thinA webv I9, and. by which the closed outer end of slot Izb. separated from an adiacent portion of the slot`I Ia by a relatively thin web I 9b., These. webs; while of. ample strength to prevent circumferential disali'gnment of the hub'body, nevertheless: may bend slightly when the locking screw 20 is tightenedrto permitthe. slots Illa and |813` tu partially close: to yield the.k desired contraction of the hub.

It mayY be observed that. the tightening of' the screw 2d may induce,l as an incident. of thel col'.- lapsing of the portioni I-'I a. slight rotation of the connecting portion I9 about a central axis thereof which is substantially parallel tothe axis of. the shaft, therefore, the diameter of the bore 2t, within. the. connecting portion I9, preferably should afford sufficient clearance that the locking screw 20 may not inhibit such rotation.

Thesubstantially perfect and complete engagement of the. inside of the.y hub-- with-the shaft, together with a setting of thehub material at portion t9 and webs I9a' and I 9b',.may render it difficult if not: impossible.- to free the.- huhfrom the: shaft merely byy loosening the locking screw 20; Where di'flculty has been experienced with-Y other hub` structures, it has. been*` the practicey to strikel the huba sharp blow or blows with a hammerrto; free it from. the shaft., thus inducing detrimental disalignment of the hub` and sometimes: damaging the shaftJ to some extent;

In' order to: obviate the: detriments mentioned in the next preceding paragrapln the present invention. includes; unlocking means for positively expanding the' hub when itis: desired to move it along or' remove it from the shaft.. The said Vunlocking means' preferably comprises a. stop member which. may be in the form offa plug. 22 adapted tobe retained within a. bore 23 drilled or otherwise formed in the hub body I2, extending laterally from the. inner side of the enlarged endof the bore: 2l... The plug 2.2. and thebore 23 may be complementally threaded and timek outer end of. the. plug, may be slotted as at. 2 2a, or otherwise recessed to receive a screwdriver or socket wrench. to drive said plug firmly into place'. As is evident from Fig. 4', the. slot 22a is easily accessible for this operation.

In assembling' the hub, the plug 22 is inserted in place after' the locking screw 2-0' has been inserted' and at least partially Ascrewed into the bore2 I, and, further, as best'seen Figal and' 3, the plug 22 is in such position that uponloosening and continuing to unscrew the locking screw 2l), the protruding outer end of the plug 22 engages the tcp of the head of the locking screw 2U and the latter, still coacting at one end with the'threaded portion of the bore 2l and coacting at its other end with the said plug, forcibly expands the hub body i2 whereby to free it from the shaft I l. This of course occurs conveniently, as a result of merely continuing the operation required in any event to loosen the locking screw 2U, and it also occurs without any detrimental effect inasmuch as hammering of the hub is unnecessary.

The embodiment illustrated in Fig. 5, differs from the preferred embodiment chiefly in that straight slots |83: and l8y are employed instead of the curved slots Ilia and I8b. In this embodiment, the collapsible portion I l may be located between bolts Md and Ilif instead of being localized at one of such bolts.

It will be seen from' the present description and the accompanying drawing that a hub according to the present invention yields a practically perfect gripping upon the shaft and assurance of proper circumferential alignment, and includes means for positively freeing the hub from the shaft to avoid hammering or other objectionable practice which might cause disalignment.

It should also be apparent that the inventive concept disclosed herein may be utilized in Various other embodiments within the invention as defined in the accompanying claims.

What we claim is:

l. A clamping hub comprising a hub body having a circumferentially collapsible portion integral therewith, rendering the hub body substantially continuous and adapting the hub body for expansion and contraction,

2. A clamping hub comprising a contractile annular hub body having an unbroken portion circumferentially collapsible substantially throughout the entire radial section thereof and being integral at opposite sides thereof with the remainder of said body whereby to provide for contraction of the body while restraining the latter against axial distortion.

3. A clamping hub comprising an expansible and contractible annular hub body having an unbroken circumferentially distortable portion, integral, at opposite sides thereof, with the remainder of said body, and adapted for distortion of a character which imparts to the remainder of thehub body no material distortion apart from that incident to expansion or contraction of said hub body, and means adapted to positively distort said distortable portion whereby to vary the circumference of said hub body.

4. A clamping hub comprising an annular hub body, capable of expansion and contraction, having an unbroken, circumferentially distortable portion integral at, opposite sides thereof, with the remainder of the hub body, and a screw coacting with the latter at opposite sides of the said distortable portion to distort said distortable portion to expand and contract the' hub body.

5. A clamping hub comprising a hub body having adjacent slots extending inwardly and outwardly substantially radially of said body and adapted to render hub portions adjacent said slots deformable to permit contraction of the hub body, and a headed screw in said hub body, extending through both said slots, and adapted to coact, at its head, with a portion of the hub body at one side of said slots, and at a threaded portion of the screw, remote from its head, with a portion ofthe hub body at the other side of said slots, whereby to positively contract the hub body.

6. A clamping hub according to claim 5, further characterized in that the said slots are arcuate and are arranged with their concave sides toward each other.

7. A clamping hub according to claim 5, further characterized in that the said slots are substantially straight and parallel relatively to each other,

8. A clamping hub according to claim 5, further characterized in having holes to receive bolts or the like for securing an element upon the hub, and in that the said slots, considered together, are disposed symmetrically relatively to said holes.

9. A clamping hub comprising an expansible hub body having adjacent slots extending inwardly and outwardly substantially radially of said body and adapted to render hub portions adjacent said slots deformable to permit expansion of the hub body, kand a screw in said hub body, extending through both said slots, and adapted to coact, substantially at its opposite ends, with hub portions at opposite sides of the said slots, whereby to positively expand the hub body.

l0. A clamping hub comprising a contractible and expansible hub body having a first slot extending outwardly from the interior of the hub body and a second slot, adjacent the rst slot, extending inwardly from the exterior of the hub body, deformable hub-body portions between the inner end of each slot and an adjacent portion of the other slot, and a locking screw extending through both said slots and having a threaded end threaded into the hub body at one side of said two slots, and its other end, with a head thereon, extending into a bore in the hub body at the other side of said two slots, the said bore having axially spaced screw-head engaging means therein, adapted to coact with opposite ends of said head to limit axial movement of the locking screw in veither direction in the bore, whereby to render said hub positively contractible and expansible in response to turning of said locking screw.

11. A clamping hub comprising an expansible and contractible annular hub body, a rst slot extending substantially radially outwardly from --the interior of the hub body, a second slot extending substantially radially inwardly from the exterior of the hub body, both said slots extending throughout the entire axial length of the hub body and the inner ends of each of said'slots being adjacent 4the other slot; deformable hubbody portions adjacent the inner ends of said slots, a connecting portion between said slots, constituting, with said deformable hub-body portions, a substantial connection between first and second opposed portions of the hub body at opposite sides of said two slots whereby to maintain circumferential alignment of said opposed portions; the hub body having a bore formed therein, extending substantially tangentially of the hub, through said opposed hub-body portions and through said slots and the connecting portion, the bore having a threaded portion in the said rst opposed portion of the hub bodyand a shoulder in the said second opposed portion; and a locking screw having a threaded end adapted to coact with the threaded portion in tract the hub.

12.' A clamping hub comprising anexpansible a-nd contractible annular hub' body, a, first. slot extending substantially radially outwardly from the. interiory of" the; hub. body, a second slot extending substantially radiallyy inwardly from the exterior of the hub body., both said slotsy extending throughout the entire axial length of'theihub body and ther inner: ends. of each. oft said sIots being adjacent; thed other slot; deformable. hubbod-y portions. adjacent; the. inner ends of said slots, a connecting portion between said slots, constituting, with said deformable. hub-body portions. a, substantial connection between first and second: opposed-` portions of the hub body at;A op.- posite. sidesofl said' two slots whereby toY maintain circumferential alignment of; said opposed por'- tions; the hub body having a bore formed therein, extending substantially' tangentially ofthe. hub, through. said' opposed hub-body portions and throughY said slots a-nd the connecting portion, the; bore having; a. threaded: portion inr the said first;I opposed portion of' the: hun body: and a: pro.- tuberance in. the said second opposed portion; and a. locking screw having a threaded end adapted to; enact-with the threaded portion in saidlbore., and being.' adapted, at its` other end, to coast with. the said4 protuberance; whereby, positively, to expand the hub.

13;. A. clampingz hub.- cornprising an expansible and contractible annular' hub body, a first slot extending substantially radially outwardly from the; interior ot the hub body, a secondA slot extending substantially radiallyv inwardly from the exterior: of the.hubfbodmbotl'l1 said; slots extending throughout: the entire axial, lengths ci the.- hub body and the inner ends of each; of said slots being adjacentthe other slot;;. deformable hubbody,l portions; adjacent the inner ends oi said sl0ts a connecting. portion between said slots', constituting', with; said deformable hub-body portions, a substantial connection between rst and second'. opposed portions; of the hub body at opposite sides of said two slots wherebyv to maintain circumferential. alignmentV of. said opposed portions; the hubfbody havingaboreiormed therein,

egaozgreo extending substantially tangentially: of the. througtr said opposed.l hub-body portions; and through saidi slots anda the. connecting portion, the bore having a. threaded portion in the.- said -rst'. opposed portion of the hub body, ashoulder in thesaidv second opposed portion, and a. pretuberance in thesaid second opposed portion, spaced from said; shoulder; and a locking screw having a threadedf endladaptedf to coactvvith thethread'- ed portion in said. bore, and a heady one; portion of which is adapted to; coact with said shoulder to contract the hubbody, and another portion of which is adapted to coact with the said.` protuberance to expand thehub. body.

14. In a clamping hub. having opposed portions adapted to. be moved relatively to; each other; ciircumterentially, tolcontract or expand the hub.; expanding andi contracting means'. comprising a locking screw, extending tangentialiy'of thefhub', and having a threaded portion toward* one end coacting with` one of said' opposed hub portions and a. head towardV its. other end' coacting with the other of said opposed hub portions, the. latjter hub; portion having means: coacting with said head for restricting longitudinal movementof the locking screwI in both of opposite directions telativeiy to the said latterhub portion, whereby rotation of thel locking screw in one direction causes positive contraction of the hub. and rotationoff said screw in the opposite direction causes positive expansion ofthe hub.

t5 In a clampinghub, expand-ing andi contracting means` according to. clamp 14, further characterized in that the means: for restricting the mentioned? longitudinali movement of the locking screw' comprises a shoulder adapted to engage the underside ofthe head of' said? screw teL limit suchv longitudinal movement of the screw in one direction, and a plug extending into the pathy ofmovement'- of the screw and adapted to engage the topof the head of said screw to-limit such Iongitudinal movement of the screw in: the opposite direction.

EDWARD; V; CRANE; HERBERT," F; JOHNSON. 

